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June 22, 2026
Sharleen D’souza & Shivani Shinde, Business Standard
Mumbai, 21 June 2026
Online beauty marketplaces Reliance Retail Ventures’ Tira and Nykaa have a common mantra: growing in-house brands. Successful brand acquisitions and margin growth seem to fuel the push.
“With private labels, margins are better. It also helps both companies plug the gap in the market which other brands are not present in,” Devangshu Dutta, chief executive officer (CEO) of Third Eyesight, told Business Standard. Within in-house brands, products need some investment in research and development (R&D), he explained.
Harish Bijoor, brand and business strategy consultant at Harish Bijoor Consults, said that margins are better for platforms with in-house brands.“Typically most companies are getting insular. The idea is to own brands and own the profits from those brands. When you are a marketplace, you put in effort for other brands, this strategy helps marketplaces lock in on profits instead of losing out to other brands, which sell on the platform,” he said.
At the 49th annual general meeting of Reliance Industries (RIL) on Friday, Isha Ambani, executive director of Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd, and non-executive director of RIL, had laid out plans for Tira. “We will scale our own brands to consumers across India and beyond, ensuring Indian beauty prod-
ucts stand proudly alongside the world’s leading global giants.”
Its in-house brands include Puraveda, Pahadi Local, haircare brand Anomaly, which was recently acquired from actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and skincare and make-up brand Akind, which it co-created with Mira Rajput Kapoor. Its portfolio also includes Nails Our Way and Dream Immerse Play.
Ambani’s statement had come a day after Nykaa’s management had also hinted at expanding its in-house brands on its investor day on Thursday. The platform, operated by FSN E-Commerce Ventures, outlined an ambitious road map to become an over $5 billion beauty and lifestyle business.
The growth of Nykaa’s “House of Brands” is expected to be significant. The management aims to be the largest house of brands business in India by financial year 2030 (FY30). Management has guided toward a net sale value (NSV) compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 30 per cent over FY26-30, taking the NSV from Rs. 1,700 crore in FY26 to Rs. 5,000 crore by FY30.
The “House of Nykaa” GMV grew over 65 per cent in FY26, with an improvement in profitability. In a report on the company’s focus on in-house brands business, Motilal Oswal said, “House of Brands is expected to grow faster than the core marketplace business and become a meaningfully larger contributor to group revenues and profits by FY30. We believe profit contribution is expected to increase disproportionately, given the higher gross margins, stronger pricing control, and lower dependence on third-party brands.”
Nykaa’s platform creates a structural incubation advantage, it said. “Fashion today serves about 300,000 styles across categories, while customer discovery increasingly happens through content, personalisation, and creator-led commerce. This allows the company to identify emerging brands and categories early, before allocating capital behind them,” the report added.
As of the fourth quarter of financial year (FY26), “House of Nykaa” had 12 brands across Beauty and Fashion categories at various growth stages, and two successful acquisitions of Dot & Key and Earth Rhythm. Dot & Key has grown 13 times over the last three years, while Kay Beauty has grown three times over this period, said the company. During the Q4FY26 results, the company had said that the strong performance of “House of Nykaa” had impacted margins positively. P Ganesh, chief financial officer, FSN E-Commerce while explaining the margin growth said, “…with gross margin improving by 132 basis points
in FY26, led by strong performance of House of Nykaa and improved service income across businesses.”
For FY26, “House of Nykaa” delivered a strong Rs. 3,176 crore of GMV. “That’s an about 50 per cent year-on-year increase. Served more than 17 million consumers and expanded distribution beyond online as well to 150,000 GT doors. As a reminder, this unit includes brands across beauty and fashion, seven brands in Beauty and in Fashion five brands, with an increased focus on one in particular, which is Nykd,” said Adwaita Nayar, executive director, cofounder and chief executive officer, “House of Nykaa Brands”, during the fourth quarter results.
(Published in Business Standard)
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June 12, 2026
Aanya Thakur & Writankar Mukherjee, Economic Times
12 June 2026, Mumbai/Kolkata
India’s leading retail chains have seen the share of e-commerce in total sales either remain flat or edge up by a sluggish 1-2 percentage points over the past four-five years despite a sustained push towards omnichannel retailing.
An ET analysis of eight major retailers-market leader Reliance Retail, Shoppers Stop, Westside, Arvind Fashions, DMart, Spencer’s Retail, Pantaloons and Bata-showed that the contribution of e-commerce to overall revenue has seen minuscule improvement since 2021-22 even as online sales continue to increase in absolute terms. By contrast, the Covid-19 pandemic spurred explosive growth, with the share of digital sales in total revenue surging three to four times in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
Industry executives attribute the slowdown partly to lower investment levels compared with pure-play digital firms such as Amazon, Flipkart, Swiggy and Blinkit-parent Eternal. Besides, retailers have consistently maintained that they will not pursue online growth at the expense of profitability, keeping prices largely aligned across online and offline channels.
The ET study found Tata-owned Westside’s online contribution stood at 7% in 2021-22 and thereafter remained around 6% till 2025-26. Reliance Retail’s online share ranged between 17% and 19% during the period, while Bata’s remained at 10-12%.
For DMart, e-commerce accounted for 5-6% of sales, while Shoppers Stop’s online arm, Shoppers Stop.Com (India) Ltd, contributed less than 1% to the consolidated revenue between 2021-22 and 2024-25. The company has not disclosed 2025-26 online sales figures yet.
“The DNA of these retailers is rooted in the physical world-infrastructure, processes and systems are not inherently designed for e-commerce, which requires a different operating model,” said Devangshu Dutta, chief executive of consultancy Third Eyesight.
“Most retailers calling themselves omnichannel are effectively multi-channel. Online retail is capital-intensive and hyper-competitive. Given the significant scope for physical store expansion, especially in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, retailers are reluctant to invest aggressively online,” he said.
Even so, Avenue Supermarts, which runs DMart, invested Rs 150 crore in online grocery platform DMart Ready this week, following a Rs 174-crore infusion a year earlier.
By comparison, Eternal infused Rs 2,600 crore into Blinkit in 2025 and another Rs 450 crore in March this year. Similarly, Swiggy approved a Rs 1,000-crore investment in supply-chain subsidiary Scootsy last year as both companies expanded their dark-store networks.
The chief executive of Aditya Birla-owned departmental chain Pantaloons, Sangeeta Tanwani, recently told analysts that online sales accounted for just 3-4% of the business. She said the company had earlier refrained from investing in the channel because profitability remained elusive.
“But over the last year, we called out omnichannel as one of our priorities… The reason why we had paused that business was because we wanted to make sure that we can get the unit economics right and make this business profitable… With all the shifts we have made this year, we feel confident of scaling up this business,” Tanwani said.
Reliance Retail, meanwhile, reported lower earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin growth in both the January-March quarter and entire 2025-26 as investments in quick commerce weighed on profitability. Chief financial officer Dinesh Taluja recently told analysts that margins depend on the pace at which online and business-to-business segments grow relative to the core offline business.
“If we slow down online growth, margins will improve. It is a mix as far as the online business continues to grow faster,” he had said.
An industry executive said the online contribution may go up modestly in this financial year due to high investment in scaling up dark stores for quick commerce.
Queries emailed to Reliance Retail did not elicit a response till press time. The company had in December last year appointed former Flipkart executive Jeyandran Venugopal as its new chief executive for the retail business.
(Published in Economic Times)
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June 12, 2026
Christina Moniz, Financial Express/Brand Wagon
12 June 2026
Legacy luggage brand VIP Industries is shedding some of its old baggage. The company, which manufactures Skybags and Aristocrat along with its flagship VIP range, has gone beyond cringey makeovers solely to attract Gen Z, and has embarked on a transformation journey that leverages its legacy to purvey a fresh range of offerings.
The company is modernising its digital presence and supply chain to catch up with competitors.
Managing director Atul Jain admits that the company has been a bit slow on the e-commerce front. It is reinventing its online store, while also making its products available across other e-commerce channels. “Quick commerce is becoming an important channel since there are several use occasions and segments within the luggage market. For instance, consumers often make last-minute purchases for a weekend trip via quick commerce. School bags and backpacks for kids, also great gifting options, are seeing good demand on these platforms,” he says
The company, which once dominated the ₹16,000 crore organised luggage market in India, saw a bit of a shakeup last year when the Piramal family sold 32% of its stake to a private equity firm. But it continues to be among the top three players in the category with a 29-30% market share. “Luggage plays the role of a traveller’s companion. We are creating designs to fit that role,” says Jain. “For example, our new VIP suitcases have a coffee cup holder and our cabin trolley bag has an easy access compartment for devices like laptops and iPads.”
The transformation goes beyond the product. VIP’s 350 exclusive physical retail touchpoints in the country are being revamped to offer a new customer experience.
Unpacking opportunities
Overits 55 years, VIP has grown from a briefcase brand into Asia’s largest luggage maker, housing labels like Skybags, Aristocrat, and Carlton (premium segment). While VIP is a premium offering targeted at business and travellers, its Aristocrat brand operates in the mass market and the budget-friendly Alfa targets consumers who typically shop in the unbranded segment. Aristocrat and Alfa together contributed upwards of 40% to the company’s revenue in FY25, followed by Skybags (28%) and VIP (20%).
Like many legacy brands, the VIP Industries’ faces the challenge to ia, stay relevant among Gen Z buyers as a plethora of digital-first brands swamp the market. “VIP has lost ground on relevance and desirability to a generation for whom luggage, like sneakers, is an expression of identity. To them, VIP feels like their parents’ brand,” says Nisha Sampath, managing partner, Bright Angles Consulting. D2C players in the category operate in the business of “lifestyle accessories” and not for “luggage” per se, she points out.
With a design-forward approach, incorporating features like compression systems, silent wheels and charging ports, these new-age brands have embedded themselves in travel “culture”, while also being Instagram worthy, say experts.
Jain says Skybags is VIP’s Gen Z focussed brand, which has over 8,20,000 Instagram followers. “We are sharpening our positioning for Skybags in our design, advertising and marketing outreach, especially on social platforms. The brand has a clear differentiation with youthful colours and prints to attract younger consumers,” he adds.
While D2C players have seen notable growth in recent years, they don’t have the kind of trust and brand equity that VIP has cultivated across its brands, nor do they have the scale or revenue that legacy brands have, he says.
Experts believe there is a significant growth opportunity for legacy players given that the unbranded market still accounts for ₹13,000-14,000 crore. The important lever for legacy brands is to clearly demonstrate value beyond price. “The unorganised market competes heavily on affordability, so organised players need to communicate durability, warranty, after-sales service, and consistent quality – areas where they have a strong inherent advantage over unorganised alternatives,” says Praveen Govindu, partner at Deloitte India. He adds that these brands should also invest in advertising and communicate this value to the end consumer.
Not only are the needs different among different consumer groups, competitive pressures are also diverse. “VIP can segment the market more cleanly with its portfolio of brands if it maintains absolute distinction to ensure clear consumer targeting across not just product attributes and pricing, but also communication and channels,” says Devangshu Dutta, CEO, Third Eyesight.
(Published in Financial Express)
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May 9, 2026
Writankar Mukherjee, Economic Times
Kolkata, 9 May 2026
India’s top retail chains including Reliance Retail, DMart, Trent, Titan Company, Jubilant FoodWorks, and V-Mart Retail opened the highest number of stores in three years in FY26, seeking to capitalise on a demand recovery and a clean-up of unviable outlets added during the post-Covid revenge-spending period.
Entry into smaller towns and cities where many consumers continue to prefer shopping at physical stores over online is also influencing the expansion plans.
An ET study of the 10 largest listed retailers showed they added 25% more stores in the last fiscal year compared to FY25. Additions are on a net basis after accounting for loss-making outlet closures.
Collectively, the retailers added 2,182 stores in FY26, equivalent to six new stores a day on a net basis. In comparison, they added 1,745 stores in FY25 and 1,865 in FY24.
Retailers attributed the store expansion spree to improving consumer sentiment, helped further by cuts in income tax and goods and services tax (GST) rates last fiscal, along with low penetration of organised retail in smaller towns and cities. Together, the ten retailers had 31,394 stores operational as of March 2026.
Expansion Set to Continue
V-Mart Retail chief executive officer Lalit Agarwal said the ongoing shift from unorganised to organised retail is fuelling this expansion as several companies are meeting their sales growth expectations. “Many retailers have also raised capital, which they are deploying to grow topline,” he said, adding that the “growth phase will continue in the current fiscal as well.”
Companies surveyed by ET also include Shoppers Stop, Westlife Foodworld, V2 Retail and Kalyan Jewellers. Together, the ten retailers had 31,394 stores operational as of March 2026. Their combined store count grew 7% in FY26, ahead of a 6% expansion in the year before.
Reliance Retail alone added 820 net stores last fiscal, rebounding from a slowdown in FY25 when it shut several unviable outlets that were opened immediately post Covid, impacting overall industry growth rates. The country’s largest retailer had added 504 net stores in FY25, 796 in FY24, and 2,844 in FY23.
Similarly, Tata-owned Titan added 532 stores in FY23, but expansion moderated to 280-290 stores annually in FY25 and FY26.
India’s retail industry saw hyper expansion in late FY22 and FY23 as retailers sought to tap a boom in post-pandemic revenge shopping.
“Retail expansion now is more organic and measured as compared to the post Covid phase when there was a huge backlog of demand and over expansion,” said Devangshu Dutta, founder and CEO at Third Eyesight, a consultancy in consumer space.
(Published in Economic Times)
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May 6, 2026
Vaeshnavi Kasthuril, MINT
Mumbai, 6 May 2026
Fashion retailers are speeding up deliveries to keep pace with instant-gratification shopping driven by quick-fashion startups, with established players and newer brands taking sharply different approaches.
For example, brands such as Biba and The House of Rare have adopted a more calibrated, infrastructure-led strategy rather than a rapid overhaul of existing store networks. “We’ve been doing this in a very soft way but not necessarily from the same stores because that affects the customer experience,” said Siddharth Bindra, managing director of Biba. Bindra said using retail stores as fulfilment hubs for rapid delivery creates operational constraints, particularly given store sizes and layouts. “We don’t have very large stores; they are anywhere between 1,000 and 2,000 square feet. So that’s not the right efficiency,” he said.
Instead, the brand is evaluating a hub-based model in cities with higher store density, enabling faster deliveries without disrupting stone operations. “If we do, it will be though proper hubs in cities where we have four to five stores, where we would start with quick commerce and accelerate it,” he said. This could enable same-day or two to three-hour deliveries.
The House of Rare, which houses Rare Rabbit (men’s urban fashion) and Rareism (women’s fashion), is adopting a similar approach, evaluating city-levee fulfilment hubs in markets with higher store concentrations to enable faster deliveries while keeping retail outlets focused on walk-in consumers.
The strategy reflects a broader attempt among legacy retallers to belance speed with experience, rather than treating stores as Interchangeable logistics nodes. “The eventual goal is the customer, but it creates a lot of difference in the customer experience” Bindra said, pointing to the trade-offs involved.
Different take
In contrast, some brands are moving more aggressively to integrate stones directly into fulfilment networks.
Libas, an initial public offering (IPO)-bound apparel company, is networking its operating model to plug its physical retail network Into a faster, hyperlocal delivery system.
Earlier, the 12-year-old company followed a more traditional structure. Online orders were largely fulfilled from central warehouses and delivered over a few days, while stores primarily served walk-in customers, with the two channels operating independently.
That is now changing. Libas is using its stores and nearby warehouses as local fulfilment points, allowing it to service orders within a much smaller delivery radius,
“At Libas, the time frame will be approximately 60-90 minutes at the max,” said Bhavay Pruthi, senior vice president, e-commerce and product management.
The rollout has been gradual, starting with select cities and limited catchments, typically within a 7-10km radius, where delivery timelines can be tightly controlled. It has also narrowed the product mix initialy to itams that are easier to move quickly.
The push comes as consumer expectations around delivery timelines extend beyond groceries into fashion, forcing brands to rethink supply-chain design,
Rise of quick fashion
The urgency to adapt is being shaped by a surge in quick fashion startups that are attracting investor attention despite heavy cash burm.
The segment has seen a flurry of funding in recent months, with Zilo raising $15.3 million in February led by Peak XV, and Knot securing $5 million in a round led by 12 Flags in December.
It has also evolved rapidly. Quick-commerce platforms such as Zepto, Instamart and Blinkit initially offered a limited range of basic fashion items for last-minute purchases. This has since expanded into a more specialized category, with vertical players offering wider assortments across party, work and occasion wear with rapid delivery timelines.
New entrants are pushing the model further. Wydo, for instance, promises deliveries within 15 to 30 minutes in Bengaluru, while Gen Z-focused offerings such as Newme’s Zip and Snitch Quick are building businesses around near-instant fashion access.
Myntra’s rapid commerce division, M-Now, accounted for about 10% of orders in the locations where it was available as of last November.
“This is the new kind of experience that customers are expecting,” Pruthi said.
Libas is working with third-party logistics providers and quick commerce platforms for the last-mile delivery, while focusing internally on faster picking, packing and order routing. Quick commerce currently accounts for about 2% of its overall sales, with scope to grow as the model scales..
Early results, however, highlight the trade-offs. “We saw very good sell-throughs for e-commerce, but it was cannibalizing existing store sales,” Pruths said.
There are also fimits to what customers are willing to buy through rapid-delivery channels. “Customers do not have the confidence to spend 15,000 for a fashion product from a quick- commerce channel,” he said.
To address this, Libas has tightened delivery radii, curated a more suitable product mix, and is testing stores with attached dark-store infrastructure to balance walk-in and online demand.
Experts say these challenges are structural.
“If you look at fashion, it’s extremely unpredictable, and if you are a brand across multiple products, it’s complicated process,” said Devangshu Dutta, founder of management consulting firm Third Eyesight.
While demand for faster deliveries is rising, it remains a small slice of the overall market, with profitability still uncertain due to limited assortments and high fulfilment costs. For traditional retailers, adopting the model requires a fundamental reworking of supply chains that were not built for near-instant delivery, Dutta added.
(Published in MINT)
